Norma’s at Le Parker Meridien–A Heavenly Brunch

You aren’t planning on leaving New York City without having brunch, are you?  If you’re only here for a couple of days you have to make Norma’s, at Le Parker Meridien in midtown Manhattan, your one brunch destination.  This is Super Brunch, Brunch x 10, Brunch on amphetamines.  This is like the diva of diner food.  It’s what you’d expect out of a hotel whose elevators have TVs looping Tom & Jerry, Laurel & Hardy, The Three Stooges and Charlie Chaplin films.

And did I mention the zillion-dollar lobster fritatta?–eggs, lobster, and approximately $995 worth of caviar!  According to the Guiness Book of World Records (yes this omelet made it into the Guiness Book of World Records!),”the frittata contains 10 oz (280 g) caviar and approximately 1 lb (0.45 kg) lobster which is covered with egg on a bed of fried potatoes. Le Parker Meridien also feature a smaller, less expensive version called the ‘regular frittata’ that costs $100 (£54).”  At a $1000 I’d be interest in finding out how many of these frittatas they’ve actually sold.  And who laid down the cash?

I thought about ordering the frittata, took a look at my pocketbook, and then decided to dive into Normalita’s Huevos Rancheros.  And let me tell you–that was the my decision of day.  Yum.  There are no words to describe how divine the taste–no words.

Don’t worry if you are a late riser, Norma’s caters to you by serving brunch until 3:00pm.  The plates are ginormous so besides breakfast and lunch, dinner might also be taken care of with this meal.  There are dozens of other egg options besides the zillion dollar fritatta–like my huge plate of Normalita’s Huevos Rancheros.

I also want to try the Lox & Lox of Bagel, and Flat as a Pancake Crab Cake!  And what about Duck n’ Eggs–I don’t know if I’ve ever even had duck, much less for breakfast!  And it comes in a huge foot-ball shaped iron skillet!

If you’re in the mood for more than just savory breakfast  food, there is more than enough sweet stuff to choose from, with more than 20 variations of pancakes, waffles and crepes.  And the maple syrup is real, sweet, and silky smooth.  The country style pancakes come with real Georgia peaches and the blueberry pancakes with Devonshire cream.  This menu is full of sweet goodness.

Yeah…like the Mango-Papaya Brown Butter Cinnamon Crepes that my daughter finally settled on, after what seemed like an hour perusing the menu.  Because seriously, deciding on just one selection was NOT an easy task.

Of course, if for some reason you don’t want breakfast, they do serve lunch as well. Enjoy all this in a lovely room with high ceilings, wood paneling, and silver trim.  Yes, a very diva diner, indeed.

The smoothies and orange juice are fresh (and orange juice refills are free!), the portions humongous, the menu clever, and the decor elegant–but the lines are long, so make sure you have a reservation.  That’s what we did–and we got right in.